The EU and NATO
urged Ankara and Moscow to avoid escalation in the row over Turkey’s
shooting down of a Russian fighter, which risks jeopardizing
Brussels’ hopes that both countries can help ease the refugee
crisis and combat ISIL.

Vladimir Putin’s
outspoken condemnation of ISIL’s attacks on Paris have raised hopes
that Russia could play an important role in attacking the terrorists’
bases in Syria and Iraq, while NATO member Turkey’s help is key to
controlling the influx of refugees.

“In this dangerous
moment after downing of Russian jet, all should remain cool headed
and calm,” European Council President Donald Tusk, who will host a
special EU-Turkey summit in Brussels on Sunday, wrote on Twitter.

Putin reacted
furiously to the incident, saying the Russian plane was in Syrian
airspace and calling Turkey’s action “a stab in the back
delivered by terrorists’ accomplices.” Turkey, in a letter to the
U.N. explaining its decision, said the Russian plane was in its
airspace for 17 seconds and had ignored 10 warnings in the space of
five minutes not to enter Turkish territory.

The Russian leader
hinted at the possibility of releasing information that would
discredit Turkish President Recep Erdoğan, speaking of the alleged
transfer to Turkey of oil and gas products from areas under ISIL’s
control.

The Islamic State of
Iraq and the Levant, which claimed responsibility for the deadly
terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13, is currently the target of
French, U.S. and now Russian air strikes in Syria and allied air
strikes on its bases in Iraq.

French President
François Hollande, who has declared “war” on ISIL, met with U.S.
President Barack Obama Tuesday, and will fly to Moscow Thursday in
the hope of securing Russian help in a joint assault on the terrorist
organization.

In that context, if
Putin undermines the Turkish president’s credibility in the fight
against ISIL, “it might be embarrassing for us to sit down with
him,” said one EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

HaberTurk TV Channel
shows a burning trail as a plane comes down after being shot down
near the Turkish-Syrian border

Another source close
to the EU-Turkey talks said it was “unlikely these tensions will
affect the summit, as they concern relations with NATO and not the
talks with the EU.”

NATO Secretary
General Jens Stoltenberg said after a specially-convened meeting of
the alliance on Tuesday to discuss the incident that he had
“previously expressed concerns about the Russian military
activities close to the border of a NATO country.”

He called for
de-escalation and “more contacts between Moscow and Ankara to avoid
these kind of incidents in the future.”

U.S. President
Barack Obama took a similar line, telling reporters after his talks
with Hollande that it was important to avoid an escalation of
tensions, while criticizing Russia because its jets “are operating
very close to the Turkish border and targeting groups supported by
Turkey and a number of other countries.”

“If Russia focuses
its energy on Daesh [a synonym for ISIL], such problems are less
likely to happen,” said Obama.

Turkey has
repeatedly warned the Russian government over violations of its
airspace. On October 3, a Russian fighter plane flying over Turkish
soil was forced back by interceptor planes. Moscow blamed “bad
weather.”

Two weeks later the
Turkish military said it had shot down a Russian drone which Ankara
said had entered Turkish airspace